New Orleans Hornets' Greivis Vasquez (21) and Philadelphia 76ers' Jrue Holiday tumble after trying to chase down a loose ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2013, in Philadelphia. New Orleans won 111-99. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

“You’re being kind,” Collins said, about the adjectives used to describe the Sixers’ under-.500 mark. “The truth hurts. Just give me a cigarette and a blindfold and shoot me right in the chest. I’d rather have that than a knife in the back.”

Collins knows the play of the Sixers, who hosted Toronto Friday, lessens Holiday’s chance at a first-time bid in the All-Star Game, which will be played Feb. 17 at Houston. The reason? Because that’s how Collins said he votes for reserves.

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“Usually I will look through and the first thing I look at is what teams are winning, so I sort of focus in on those players,” he said. “It’s not fair...but to me, if it’s close, the guys on winning teams should (get voted in).”

Eastern Conference coaches have until noon Wednesday to pick three frontcourt players, two backcourt players and two additional players for the 12-man All-Star team. The reserves will be announced Thursday. The Sixers’ unsightly record aside, Holiday’s numbers speak for themselves: He’s third among the Eastern Conference guards in scoring average (19.0), second in assists (8.8), sixth in field-goal percentage (.459), and eighth in rebounds (4.2).

The good news for Holiday is Milwaukee’s Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings could cancel out one another, Brooklyn’s Deron Williams isn’t having a season on-par with his career numbers, and Chicago’s Derrick Rose has been out since last postseason.

That might not make a difference. Here’s how Collins sized up Holiday’s chances: “Hard. Tough.”

“If you’re asking me he’s playing at an all-star level, absolutely he’s at an all-star level,” Collins said. “If we were winning, would his chances be better? Absolutely. You look at Jrue and how well he’s played and what he’s done for our team and he’s definitely in the conversation. Will our record hurt him? I say yes.”

With Spencer Hawes’ and Lavoy Allen’s sudden allergic reaction to rebounding, the door is open for Arnett Moultrie to crack the Sixers’ rotation.

The rookie, who had played only twice in the last 17 games, has gotten onto the floor for only six minutes since a Jan. 8 recall from his NBA Developmental League demotion.

“If Collins throws me out there, I have to just do my thing,” said Moultrie, a 6-10 forward. “He tells me to keep working because I need to deserve to be out there.”

Moultrie, who said he was more of a scorer than a rebounder at Mississippi State, said he knows his responsibilities here — “strictly rebounding, coming with energy.”

Like Holiday, Collins has had to take it easy on Thad Young in practice.

Sometimes needing minutes in the middle from the undersized Young has worn down the first-time starter, who at times has been limited in practice the days after games.

“Every week, I get the reports on strength and conditioning, and the first thing I look at is Thad’s weight,” Collins said. “If he keeps it up over 230, I’m feeling good. Last year, he got down to 217 and it took its toll.”

The one plus of playing Young as a center in the Sixers’ smaller lineups is that most opponents, in a bid to contend with Young’s speed, will remove their big men in favor of more athletic forwards — a matchup that favors Young.

Jason Richardson, who only a day earlier had 20 CCs of fluid drained from his left knee, started against Toronto. He said in pregame that he had to test it out before he could declare himself available.

And Collins wasn’t going to be the one to shelf him.

“I learned that a long time ago from Michael Jordan,” Collins said. “When guys want to play and you hold them out, eventually they won’t want to play.”

Kwame Brown, who missed practice Thursday, wasn’t in uniform. The team said Brown is dealing with a sinus infection.